top of page
Dragonfly Final Assembly v93_edited.jpg
Sentinel
Mechanical flight system

Sentinel is the core airborne platform of the Dragonflyer system: a bio-inspired, autonomous aerial vehicle modelled on dragonfly flight mechanics and behaviour.
 

It is designed as a persistent, reusable flying organism rather than a disposable drone, capable of carrying out multiple environmental tasks through a system of interchangeable belly rails.
 

At its heart, Sentinel is not mission-specific.
It is a flying host platform a stable, intelligent airframe engineered to accept different functional “organs” depending on the task at hand.

Sentinel
Modular Bio-Inspired Aerial System

Traditional UAVs are often designed around a single job:

  • mapping

  • spraying

  • sampling

  • monitoring
     

Sentinel inverts this idea.

The airframe remains constant, while the mission capability is defined by the belly rail module attached beneath it.

This creates a platform that is:

  • mechanically consistent

  • operationally familiar

  • rapidly reconfigurable

  • scalable across environments
     

The result is a system that can move between environmental survey, pest suppression, and water quality management without redesigning the aircraft, retraining operators, or redeploying infrastructure.

System Philosophy: One Airframe, Many Missions

Sentinel is the primary flying system, the wings, propulsion, power, control, and intelligence layer.

Its responsibilities include:

  • lift and flight stability

  • navigation and positioning

  • energy management

  • sensor timing and synchronisation

  • communications and telemetry

  • payload power and data routing
     

From a systems perspective, Sentinel behaves like a host organism:

  • the wings generate motion

  • the flight controller acts as a nervous system

  • the belly rail becomes a task-specific organ
     

This separation ensures that mission hardware never compromises flight safety or baseline performance.

The Sentinel Airframe (The “Living Body”)

The belly rail is a rigid, standardised mechanical and electrical interface mounted along Sentinel’s underside. It is the single attachment point for all mission systems.
 

Core Design Principles

  • Quick-swap: modules can be removed and installed without airframe disassembly

  • Unified interface: identical mounting points, connectors, and data pathways

  • Balanced mass distribution: keeps the centre of gravity within a known envelope

  • Mission isolation: faults or failures in one module do not affect the core aircraft


Each rail carries:

  • its own sensors or actuators

  • local processing (where needed)

  • environmental protection

  • mission-specific geometry
     

Sentinel recognises the installed rail on power-up and configures itself accordingly.

Belly Rail Architecture (The Modular Spine)

“Autonomous bio-inspired environmental management system”

Dragonfly Final Assembly v95.png

  • Low acoustic signature

  • Natural flight behaviour (doesn’t spook wildlife)

  • Modular payload swapouts

  • Sensor heavy architecture

  • Hover + slow loiter

  • Energy-efficient patrols

Our platform offers:

  • Chemical pest control causes resistance, ecosystem damage, and public health concerns

  • Water quality monitoring is sparse, labour-intensive, and reactive

  • Existing UAVs are noisy, ecologically disruptive, and poorly suited to low-altitude environmental interaction

Problem Statement:

  • Bio-mimetic flapping-wing UAV with natural acoustic and visual signatures

  • Modular payload architecture for both pest control and water quality sensing

  • Autonomous surface sampling without boats or fixed infrastructure

  • Data-driven ecological intervention, not blanket treatment

Innovation:

  • Reduced mosquito populations without pesticides

  • Early detection of water pollution and eutrophication

  • Lower operational costs for councils and conservation bodies

  • Scalable platform for agriculture, wetlands, and floodplains

Impact:

Sentinel is not just a drone. 
It is an environmental agent, capable of observing, responding, and adapting to the natural world without overwhelming it.

Mission Rail 1: Environmental Survey

Purpose
Highlight biodiversity, assess ecosystem health, and provide non-invasive environmental intelligence.
 
How It Works
This rail transforms Sentinel into a low-disturbance aerial surveyor. Flying low and slow, often skimming water surfaces or following hedgerows, it gathers spatial and temporal data without disrupting wildlife.
 
Typical functions:

  • habitat mapping

  • insect activity observation

  • vegetation density analysis

  • seasonal change tracking
     

Why Dragonfly Flight Matters

Dragonfly-style flight enables:

  • hovering over fixed points

  • lateral movement without yaw

  • ultra-slow loitering

  • precise altitude control
     

This allows Sentinel to behave more like a living observer than a machine, blending into natural systems rather than dominating them.

Mission Rail 2: Pest Suppression

Purpose
Reduce mosquito populations and other harmful insects without chemicals, targeting the source rather than the symptom.
 
How It Works
This rail supports biologically informed suppression methods, designed to interrupt breeding cycles rather than indiscriminately kill insects.
 
Possible mechanisms include:

  • targeted larval zone interaction

  • disturbance of surface breeding sites

  • precision release of biological controls

  • environmental manipulation at micro-scale
     

Sentinel’s flight profile is critical here:

  • repeated low-altitude passes

  • precision hovering above stagnant water

  • route memory for recurring patrols
     

Rather than spraying, Sentinel intervenes carefully, locally, and repeatably.

Mission Rail 3: Water Quality Management

Purpose
Monitor freshwater systems in real time and identify early warning signs of ecological stress.
 
How It Works
This rail allows Sentinel to interact directly with ponds, rivers, and wetlands, hovering just above the surface or briefly touching down where required.
 
Typical measurements may include:

  • temperature

  • turbidity

  • conductivity

  • dissolved oxygen indicators

  • nutrient presence
     

Sentinel can perform:

  • repeatable survey routes

  • seasonal trend monitoring

  • post-flood or pollution event assessment
     

Because the platform is airborne, it reaches locations that are:

  • unsafe for humans

  • inaccessible to boats

  • impractical for fixed sensors

Operational Use: How Sentinel Is Deployed

1. Mission Planning

The operator selects:

  • the belly rail module

  • the flight profile

  • the survey or intervention zone

2. Rail Installation

The chosen belly rail is mounted to Sentinel:

  • mechanically locked

  • electrically connected

  • automatically identified

3. Flight Execution

Sentinel performs the mission:

  • autonomously, semi-autonomously, or manually

  • using flight patterns optimised for the rail’s task

4. Recovery & Data Use After flight:

  • data is retrieved or transmitted

  • rails can be swapped immediately

  • the same airframe is reused

One Sentinel can perform multiple mission types in a single day.

Why This Matters

This system represents a shift away from:

  • chemical dependence

  • single-purpose drones

  • invasive environmental monitoring
     

Toward:

  • biologically aligned intervention

  • modular, repairable systems

  • long-term ecological stewardship
     

Sentinel is not just a drone.
It is an environmental agent, capable of observing, responding, and adapting to the natural world without overwhelming it.

bottom of page